Clint Hocking — the director behind Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and Watch Dogs: Legion — has spoken candidly about the experience of leading massive game development teams at Ubisoft, comparing it to trying to work while “flaming barrels are falling down from a construction site.” The comments came months after Hocking parted ways with Ubisoft mid-development on Assassin’s Creed Hexe.
Quick Facts
- Who: Clint Hocking, veteran director (Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, Watch Dogs: Legion)
- What: Left Ubisoft mid-development on Assassin’s Creed: Codename Hexe
- When: Departed earlier in 2026
- Status: AC Hexe remains on track for 2027 release
The Donkey Kong Problem
Speaking on the FRVR podcast, Hocking used a vivid analogy to describe the experience of directing a project involving around 1,000 people. The reference point was Donkey Kong — specifically the arcade game’s iconic falling barrel hazard — as a way of illustrating the constant stream of problems raining down on a director trying to focus on the creative work at hand.
“On Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, I would just walk over to the desk of the person who was making a thing, and sit down with them and talk to them about what they’re doing,” Hocking recalled. The contrast with large-team productions was stark: “On a huge game with 1,000 people, you go into a meeting to review some piece of content — some quest, say, or some location — and there’s 30 people in the meeting. Directors and producers and project managers, and very often even the level designer who built it isn’t even in the meeting.”
“Where’s the person who worked on this?” “Ah, they’re working on the thing after the thing after the next thing.” — Clint Hocking
The anecdote captures something widely felt but rarely stated so directly in the games industry: as team sizes ballooned across the triple-A sector over the past decade, creative directors increasingly found themselves managing communication structures rather than making creative decisions.
Why He Left Assassin’s Creed Hexe
Hocking had been leading development on Assassin’s Creed: Codename Hexe — the next major entry in Ubisoft’s flagship franchise — when the parting of ways was announced earlier this year. The departure was described as part of a broader reshuffle at the top of Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed brand. Hocking’s comments on team dynamics suggest the challenge of scaling creative vision across enormous studios may have played a role in how things unfolded.
Assassin’s Creed Hexe is understood to remain on track for a 2027 release despite the leadership change. The project continues under Ubisoft’s Montréal studio, where the series has long been headquartered.
A Wider Industry Conversation
Hocking’s candour touches on a tension that runs through the modern games industry. The budgets and team sizes required to ship a competitive triple-A title have grown enormously — yet the creative model that produces the best work often depends on small, tight-knit teams with direct communication. The result is a structural contradiction that studios are still figuring out how to resolve.
What’s Next
Hocking hasn’t announced a new project, but with his experience spanning Ubisoft’s most ambitious creative periods, he’s unlikely to stay quiet for long. For Assassin’s Creed Hexe, the focus now is on delivering the franchise’s next chapter on schedule — with or without its original director at the helm.
